Chapter 110
29. Item Presentation (1)
In the early days of my enrollment, I used to go out hunting every weekend, getting a pass to leave. That was the only way I knew to get stronger.
Now, it’s different.
I’ve learned proper training methods that don’t require me to go far, and I can also research items to enhance my external abilities.
Thanks to that, I can now enjoy some personal leisure time on weekends, as long as I’m not too busy.
Usually, I spend my time doing club activities with Aiselle and Ma Yuseong. But this weekend, I spent the whole day on Rodeo Street pretending to be on a date with Flame.
It was a form of rest, I suppose. Compared to the stressful daily training and life-threatening battles, watching a movie, drinking coffee, and playing whack-a-mole was quite enjoyable and stress-relieving.
I only intended to pretend to date, but it felt like I half-seriously enjoyed the outing. …I’m almost thirty years old, so what am I even doing?
Anyway, after successfully pretending to date, I headed straight to the Alchemy Castle.
I often visited Alterisha’s faction within the Alchemy Castle.
There had been a lot of commotion recently, but I couldn’t put off my tasks.
“Yu-seol! You’re here?”
Alterisha greeted me warmly, her white coat stained with various reagents, as she was in the middle of alchemical work with other researchers.
“How have you been?”
I put a box of energy drinks I had bought on the way on the table and asked. She smiled, looking tired but happy.
“Don’t even ask. I feel like I’m going to die from busyness. We’re about to hold an ‘Item Presentation.’ I’m a bit nervous since it’s a big event for prominent figures in the grand auditorium…”
“You’ll do great.”
“Yeah. I hope so.”
Items can be anything and do anything.
But when presenting items to the world, showing too many things at once might backfire.
T his w a s copi e d f r o m k i n g mt l .o r g
Ordinary people may not easily accept items like accessory-type items or consumables.
‘You see as much as you know.’
It’s not that ordinary people are ignorant.
If you suddenly unveil something never seen before, people are more likely to be confused than excited.
So, Alterisha decided to present something familiar to people first.
The easiest way to explain how great an item is… is to make it comparable to existing things.
The most familiar objects to mages.
Commonly used by everyone.
The ‘Mage Robe’ and the ‘Staff.’
Previously, mage robes and staffs were made with magical engineering, but encountering alchemical magical engineering revolutionized them.
To explain it in a way that a 21st-century modern person would understand…
Here, we have an old-fashioned mobile phone.
It works, but unless you pull out the antenna, the signal is poor, and it doesn’t work in the countryside. It doesn’t have internet capability, and you can’t even listen to music on it.
Then one day, suddenly.
Smartphones were introduced to the world.
You can check your location on a map in real-time, chat with others anytime, and even have a camera and internet functionality—a versatile smartphone!
That’s the level of revolution the item represents.
There’s no need to reveal all other item technologies.
It’s enough to improve and present the functions of the staff and robe.
Even that alone will make people tremble at the technology of the items.
“Yu-seol, aren’t you busy lately? I heard you’re attending the Aslan Seminar.”
“It just happened.”
“That’s amazing… As if solving the Random Aeration Cross Formula wasn’t enough, you wrote another thesis and are attending Aslan…”
T h i s w a s c o p i e d f r o m k i n g m t l .o r g
“I was just lucky.”
I took off my Stella coat and hung it on the hanger, then changed into a white coat.
This coat, also an item prototype, had strong defense, enough to withstand a considerable explosion.
“It’s good to hold the Item Presentation, but are you also properly preparing for the ‘Investor Briefing’?”
“Yes. Would you like to check it?”
An investor briefing exclusively for Melian, the president of Star Cloud.
It was part of the effort to promote the ‘luxury branding’ of items, developing a slightly different product from the usual presentations.
“Please show me now.”
Although I don’t have mana in my body to perform alchemy directly, I can at least observe the process and give feedback.
The alchemists in Alterisha’s faction liked my feedback. They always appreciated my sharp insights and corrections.
“Wow…”
I’ve been surprised every time I come, but this time I was astonished again. The speed of technological advancement was incredible.
“This is the item we’re working on for luxury branding. It’s still incomplete, but would you like to try it on?”
T h i s w as c o p i ed fr o m k ingm t l .or g
“Yes.”
Two alchemical assistants approached me from behind and handed me a box.
Inside were a bracelet and a choker. Despite their appearance, these items were actually a staff and a robe, simply miniaturized.
Previously, Alterisha had given me a bracelet-type item that expanded to cover my entire forearm. That item was the prototype, and this one was the improved version.
While the stats might be lower than other items of the same grade, these were portable equipment items.
After equipping the thin bracelet and activating it, mana particles flowed out, solidifying into a long rod in an instant.
“Oh…”
The weight was light, and the stats were decent.
While sacrificing portability would yield better stats, mages in the Aether World, like on Earth, preferred portability even at the cost of some performance, leading to the creation of such items.
Accessories that could be equipped as robes and staffs anytime, anywhere.
How attractive is that?
The only drawback was the high price. Miniaturizing particles and materials required advanced technology, even beyond modern Earth’s nanotechnology, and lots of special and expensive materials.
In the distant future, when ‘subspace’ becomes common, the focus will shift back to performance. But that’s a long way off. The technology to create ‘vessels,’ which are the foundation of subspace, was far from being developed.
Next, I tried on the choker. Pressing the jewel on the neck, the choker quickly transformed into a garment, covering my entire body as a robe.
Th i s w a s c o pi e d f r o m k i n g m t l . o rg
“Oh… It’s nice.”
“It has an automatic activation feature for a level 2 shield.”
Level 2 refers to Class 2.
T h i s w a s c o p i ed f r o m k i n g m tl. org
A portable choker with a full-body Class 2 shield function. The world has come a long way.
T hi s w a s co pi e d f r o m kin gm t l .or g
“We don’t have the technology to focus on design yet, so it just covers your body.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. Even creating simple sleeves or pockets is daunting.”
I pondered briefly and asked for a mana pen. The alchemists quickly brought me a mana pen.
I didn’t want to worry about such details, but I had no choice.
This item was to be presented as a ‘luxury’ item to Melian, so it couldn’t be left plain without a design.
“What if we drew boundaries on the particle reduction line and added shape-memory alloys? Right now, it just folds and unfolds, but adding alloys would record the approximate shape. Even just drawing boundaries on the particles could create sleeves or pockets, don’t you think?”
“Gasp…!”
An alchemist who heard my words took a deep breath. Alterisha’s reaction was not much different.
“That’s… well… it’s possible…”
With current technology, dozens of alchemists would have to work together to implement that.
But, for the presentation, the finished product was more important than the process or effort.
It was enough to show evidence that ‘this item could be mass-produced someday.’
In the full-scale development and commercialization stage, that process would have to be significantly shortened… but for now, it could serve as a ‘luxury item sample’ to be shown to Melian.
“Well then, let’s keep up the good work.”
I said and left the place. There was no one to see me off.
Thi s w as c op i e d fr o m ki ng mtl .or g
All the alchemists who would usually greet me were engrossed in the mana lines I had drawn.
* * *
Although I finished my work at the Alchemy Castle, I did not return to Stella immediately.
Third World Tree, Orchard of Flower Radiance.
I planned to visit Leafanel’s Garden.
I always visited late at night. Walking on deserted paths would attract too much attention.
Today, though it wasn’t that late, it was already evening, so I went straight to Leafanel’s Garden.
-Hi!
As expected, Leafanel, who had long awakened, was energetically roaming the garden. I had received a signal in my mind that Leafanel’s spirit had awakened, but I didn’t fully understand it, so I came a bit late.
“Hey. You look healthy?”
-Yes! I’m super healthy!
She replied, but I felt a pang of sadness. Her form had become much smaller than before.
T hi s w a s c o pi e d f r om k i n g m t l. o r g
Originally, she had a human-like shape, but now she was just slightly bigger than a human hand.
Ancient spirit beasts that lived for a long time would take on a human-like form, but Leafanel had weakened to the point where she couldn’t maintain even that shape.
-It’s okay! I can recover soon!
“How long will it take?”
-About a thousand years?
“…Oh. That’s really soon.”
Though she had lost most of her power, Leafanel was so happy moving around that she didn’t rest for a moment. She seemed so happy, and I was relieved.
-I can recover even faster!
Seeing my expression, Leafanel smiled brightly.
“How?”
-Spirit contract!
“A spirit contract?”
In mage’s terms, it’s a familiar contract.
-Yes. A long time ago, I was really weak too. But after contracting with Ha Taeryeong, I became super strong.
“Ha Taeryeong…”
The one who researched Mana Leakage Syndrome and created Taeryeong Divine Art.
But it seemed strange.
“You got stronger by contracting with someone who has no mana? How?”
Mages and spirits want each other because it benefits both. Mages enhance their magic performance through elemental affinity from spirits, and spirits grow stronger by receiving mana from mages.
T h i s w a s c o p ied fro m k in gm t l . or g
But Ha Taeryeong had Mana Leakage Syndrome.
No mana in his body.
What benefit would a spirit get from contracting with such a person?
-I… don’t know.
“You don’t know?”
-No. I just did it. And I got stronger.
“Wow. That’s a convenient answer.”
She didn’t know the reason or cause, but apparently, the result was good…
-So, let’s contract. What do you say?
“It’s not a bad idea…”
Though my spirit affinity was quite high, I couldn’t contract with any spirit. A body without mana was a highly unattractive contract partner.
It felt like wanting to date but not wanting to get married.
“Will this really make you stronger?”
Though she had lost all her power, Leafanel was a great spirit who once reached the spiritual realm. Contracting with her had no downsides for me.
Unless Leafanel suffers significant losses.
“Are you sure?”
Feeling a bit guilty, I asked again, but Leafanel just nodded enthusiastically.
-Trust me!
Th i s wa s c o p i ed f r o m ki n g mtl . or g
“Alright… You asked for it. No backing out later?”
-Yes, yes.
As I reached out my hand to her, Leafanel flew into my palm and lightly kissed it.
Then, a constellation-like light surrounded my body, spreading up high into the sky.
[You have made a Soul Contract with Spirit Leafanel!]
End of Chapter